For over two decades, David Tsai, a Partner at Pillsbury, has been a leader in the Asian American and LGBTQI+ legal communities. He was the first out gay president of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area (AABA) and a former Co-Chair of BALIF, the Bay Area’s LGBTQI+ bar association.
Throughout his legal career, David has devoted himself to pro bono work on behalf of the LGBTQI+ community. He has successfully represented dozens of LGBTQI+ clients in asylum matters and led the drafting of amicus briefs filed in the California same-sex marriage/Prop 8 cases that were signed by more than 100 organizations. He has also served as a Panel attorney, Board member, donor, and advisor for the AIDS Legal Referral Panel (ALRP). In addition to his legal work, David has participated in AIDS/LifeCycle and his volunteerism with Project Open Hand, the SF LGBT Center, the California AIDS Hotline, and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
David currently serves on the boards of the Victory Fund, Equality California, Pride Wide, California Rural Legal Assistance, and Asian Law Alliance. In addition to his leadership at AABA and BALIF, he was previously Co-Chair of the Minority Bar Coalition of the San Francisco Bay Area, President of the Harvard Club of San Francisco, and a board member of Lambda Legal, UC Riverside, the Bar Association of San Francisco, and the Santa Clara County Bar Association. He currently also serves as a Commissioner of the San Francisco Ethics Commission. For his work in civil rights, David has been recognized by the California State Legislature and the National LGBT Bar Association.
Reflective of the work and legacy of David Tsai, the David Tsai Pride Scholarship will be granted by the BALIF Foundation each year to one law student and one lawyer in their first three years of practice who has shown excellence, achievement, and a demonstrated commitment to leadership, mentorship, and intersectional legal advocacy for LGBTQI+ individuals. Each David Tsai Pride Scholarship recipient must be a member of BALIF and identify on the LGBTQI+ spectrum and/or has performed legal work/advocacy on behalf of the LGBTQI+ community. The David Tsai Pride Scholarship will be administered annually by a committee composed of members of the BALIF Foundation board of directors.
The Bay Area Lawyers of Individual Freedom (BALIF) Foundation is pleased to announce the commencement of the David Tsai Pride Scholarship.
To be eligible for the David Tsai Pride Scholarship, applicants must demonstrate:
- How they have overcome personal hardships or challenges;
- Excellence and achievement in law school or their first three years of practicing law;
- Leadership potential, an outstanding commitment to intersectional legal advocacy, and a history of involvement with LGBTQI+, first-generation, or community-centric student, professional, or civic organizations, such as BALIF;
- Leadership and service in support of vulnerable, marginalized, disadvantaged, underrepresented, or intersectional communities, including but not limited to the LGBTQI+ community; and
- Commitment to serving or practicing in the Bay Area.
Award: Two individual awards in the amount of $2,500 each.
Application Process:
- Resume Submission. Please include grade point average.
- Essay Submission. In no more than 500 words, the essay should address how the applicant fulfills the above-mentioned eligibility requirements. Essays should also describe how the Award will be used by and benefit the applicant.
- Interview. Award finalists will be invited to interview the week of June 1.
- Pride Recognition. Recipients of the award must be available to attend the BALIF Foundation’s Pride Event on June 17 or 18. Final details are forthcoming.
Applications must be received by 5:00 P.M. on May 15, 2026. For any questions concerning the David Tsai Pride Scholarship, please email BALIF Foundation Directors Steven Mills and Angelina Austin at millss.92@gmail.com and angaustin23@gmail.com.